@Mentions

Better Messages supports @ mentions in every conversation — type @, pick a participant from the autocomplete dropdown, and that user's name is highlighted in the message + they get a priority notification. The Slack / Discord / community-platform standard, built into every Better Messages thread.

What it adds#

Type @ to open the mention autocomplete picker
Live-filtered dropdown showing matching participants from the conversation
Mentioned users get a per-thread "mentions" badge in their inbox, on top of normal unread counts
Mentioned text is visually highlighted in the rendered message
Mention picker shows user avatars and online-presence dots (WebSocket version)
Each mention is a clickable link to the user's profile

How it works#

When the user types @ in the message input, an inline picker appears. As they keep typing, the picker filters participants whose name or username matches the input. Tab or click to insert — the user is added to the message as a mention token tied to the user's ID.

Action	Outcome
User types `@an`	Picker shows participants whose name starts with "an" (Anna, Andy, etc.)
User selects "Anna"	Message text becomes "Hi @Anna, ..." with Anna's name highlighted
Message sends	Anna's inbox shows a mention badge in addition to the unread count
Anna clicks the mention	She's taken to her profile page
Anna opens the conversation	The mention is cleared on read

The mention token stores the user ID, so renaming a user later still resolves correctly. Display text uses the user's current display name.

When mentions matter most#

Scenario	Why mentions help
Large group chat	Direct addresses cut through the noise — only the mentioned person is alerted
Community announcements	Tag specific contributors for follow-up
Bug-triage threads	Tag the developer responsible for a specific area
LMS discussions	Tag the instructor when a question needs their input
Cross-team coordination	Tag specific people across teams to pull them into a thread

How to enable#

Mentions are enabled by default. No setting to flip — the feature is built into the message input.

Force notify on @-mention#

To ensure mentioned users are alerted even when they've muted the conversation, turn on Settings → Messaging → Force mentions notifications. With that switched on, an @-mention bypasses the mute on a per-message basis — useful for community managers reaching specific people in noisy threads.

Frequently asked questions#

Can I mention everyone in a conversation with @everyone?#

Not in the default UI — only individual users can be mentioned. A global @everyone / @channel token isn't part of the picker today.

Can users mention themselves?#

Yes — but no mention badge is set for the sender (you don't notify yourself). Useful for highlighting your own past comments by reference.

What happens if I mention someone who isn't in the conversation?#

The picker only shows current participants, so this normally can't happen.

Can I mention AI bots?#

Yes — @bot mentions trigger the AI bot to respond. In a 1-on-1 conversation the bot already replies to every message; in a group conversation it only replies when explicitly @-mentioned (to avoid spamming the group).